The invention relates to a method for removing polymeric materials from a surface of a nanostructure. The invention further relates to a corresponding scanning probe microscope adapted to perform such a method and a corresponding computer program product.
One major challenge for the scaling and commercialization of nanostructures, in particular for 1-dimensional (1D) and 2-dimensional (2D) carbon nanostructures such as carbon nanotubes, graphene and graphene nanoribbons, lies in the efficient post processing of these materials after lithographic processing. The lithographic processing may be e.g. required to connect these materials between metal electrodes to arrange them e.g. in a transistor configuration.
Commonly used polymeric resist materials have a strong affinity and adhesion to carbon nanostructures. Common approaches use chemical or thermal treatment to remove the excessive polymeric materials, e.g. rapid thermal annealing or sample rinsing.